Take One Ingredient: Asparagus

 "You needn't tell me that a man who doesn't love oysters and asparagus and good wines has got a soul, or a stomach either. He's simply got the instinct for being unhappy."
 - Saki

Don't get me wrong - I love all the seasons.  But there's something special about this time of year.  The evenings are getting longer and warmer, the trees are getting greener, the food is getting fresher.
Have you noticed there is a certain quality to the sound when you eat outside?  There is a slight muffle to the chink of glasses and laughter seems to come more easily.  For me, all of this is symbolised by a single vegetable - asparagus.
The prized shoot, phalic to some eyes, just tastes of vegetable somehow, unusually for a vegetable it has umami notes to it - decidedly savoury and green tasting.

Asparagus is at its best when dealt with simply.  The earliest known recipe comes from Apicius, the Roman cookbook(s) - and it is the most simple recipe in the whole collection:

"Dry the asparagus, put it upright in hot water." *

Selection
You should always choose the most local asparagus you can - more than most vegetables, asparagus loses its flavour from the moment it is cut - all the sweeteness turns to starch and the delicate buds start to go slimy.
Choose firm stalks with tight buds - the diameter of the stalks is up to you - personally, I prefer something about 1cm-1.5cm in diameter.

Preparation
Preparation is simple, but made to look difficult by too many people. Gently flex each stalk from the bottom - you'll find a natural break point a couple of centimeters from the bottom of the stalk - break this off.  DON'T throw this away - put the ends to one side!
Now here's where I differ from the chefs - at this point, they will take a vegetable peeler and peel the stalks away - I honestly cannot see the point.  Instead, with a sharp knife, gently peel away the little triangular leaves that grow up the stalk.

All your trimmings should now go into a sealed bag in the freezer - they are indespensible when it comes to your next asparagus soup, or the stock for asparagus risotto.

Cooking
It should be cooked briefly either boiled/steamed or grilled.  Times have certainly changed over the last few decades - Elizabeth David quotes a recipe calling for 10-12 minutes boiling and calls the cooking time "scanty"** and Jane Grigson calls for 15 to 45 minutes depending on thickness***.

Traditionally, asparagus is boiled standing-up in a pan with the tops out of the water, allowing the stems to cook more than the buds.  However, now that we go in for more al-dente vegetables, I don't think this is required.  Simply plunge into salted boiling water for just a few minutes - anywhere between 3 and 8 minutes should do you.   

I'm currently experimenting with the boiling water - my last batch is in the freezer and will be used as the base of a forthcoming asparagus stock.  I'll let you know how it goes. 

Asparagus can also be grilled or roasted when lubricated with a little olive oil.  The stripes gained from using a griddle pan lend a lovely smokiness.

Serving
Asparagus is then commonly served with hollandaise or just with melted butter, or (heaven) dipped into a soft-boiled egg - and that's hard to improve upon. 

Less traditionally (for us in the UK at least) asparagus is delicious when char-grilled with baby leeks and served with olive oil, balsamic vinegar and shavings of parmesan. 

I love it as a starter with an eggy-sauce (either hollandaise or mayonnaise) or just soft butter, sprinkled with sea salt and served with brown bread.

I think it goes pretty well with fish - and there are a couple of recipes coming up - asparagus and crab salad followed by asparagus and smoked haddock.

Note:

(30 May 2007) Here are my asparagus postings:
Crab and Asparagus Salad
Smoked Haddock with Asparagus and Poached Egg
Chargrilled Asparagus
Asparagus Risotto

*Apicius Book III (from Apicius A Critical Edition by Christopher Grocock and Sally Grainger - 2006)
**Elizabeth David, French Provincial Cooking - 1960
***Jane Grigson's Vegetable Book - 1978

Top asparagus image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

tags: asparagus  

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